


Perceptions

by SansyFresh



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Aborted Undertale Genocide Run, And angst, Angst, Because Grillby is an asshat, Did I mention fluff?, Fell has a child mindset, Fell has a mental disability, Fell has a speech impediment, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Red is a good bro, Slurs against someone with a Mental Disability, Undertale Genocide Route, Undertale Pacifist Route, lots of fluff, lots of headcanons
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-18
Updated: 2017-02-05
Packaged: 2018-09-18 08:52:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9377471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SansyFresh/pseuds/SansyFresh
Summary: Fell and Red have the misfortune of living in a kill or be killed world with the added adversity of Fell truly being the younger brother.Hiatus





	1. This is Why You Wear the Armor

**Author's Note:**

> DAMN FRESH, BACK AT IT AGAIN WITH THE RANDOM FELL STUFF
> 
>  
> 
> I'm not sorry.
> 
>  
> 
> Here's another work by Crush and I, I hope you all enjoy this little adventure ^^

When Red helped his brother make his battle body, he’d had to explain at least three times that yes, he had to wear it, and no, he couldn’t just wear his favorite fluffy sweater over the top. “Why?” he’d asked, drawing out the y sound until he seemed to realize his voice was still going, cutting off the noise with a surprised shake of his head. “Because it will protect you if someone tries to hurt you,” Red had explained patiently, fastening the straps on the breastplate. 

“But if...if they tried…” 

Red looked up with a reassuring smile. “Yes, if someone tried to hurt you, I’d come save you. This is so that you are safe until I get there.”

Fell had fidgeted for a moment, summoning a small bone and just twirling it between his fingers. “Safe?”

Red nodded. “Safe, bro. Don’t worry, this has my magic in it, it’ll tell me if anything happens, okay?” Fell nodded, letting the bone construct fade away as he raised his arms carefully above his head. Red finished attaching the armor, giving it a once over before declaring himself satisfied. He stepped back to give his brother some room to adjust. Fell stood with his arms still in the air for a moment, staring down at himself, then he lowered them slowly and turned to face Red.

“Coooooool, Sans.” he said, a giant smile lighting up his face. 

“Why, yes, I am Cool Sans, thank you very much, I’m glad you recognize my greatness, bro.” Fell glared at him for a moment, seeming to be trying to figure out how to express himself before he gave up and just flipped him off, causing Red to burst into laughter. 

“Why...do I wear…” Fell stumbled over his words again, Red waiting patiently as he watched the other get frustrated. He glared at the ground for a moment, then lifted his hands in front of him, signing carefully. Red frowned as he watched, he’d never been good at this sort of thing, and Fell had to repeat himself a few times before Red got the message. 

“Oh! You don’t have to wear it at home, I just wanted to make sure it fit you.” Fell immediately put his hands back in the air, smiling hopefully. Red shook his head. “Sorry, bro, we have to go shopping in a few minutes. You’d have to put it all back on.” Fell frowned, pouting a little, before getting a thoughtful look on his face and hurrying out of his room and downstairs, Red following him with a quick shortcut. After looking around for a moment, Fell produced his carefully written list for Red to look over. “Looks good to me, bro,” Red said, moving to put the list in his pocket.

“No! Me!” Fell said excitedly, touching his fingers to his breastplate. “Armor, I’m safe, Sans!”

“You sure you wanna go on your own this time?” Red smiled a little as his brother nodded rapidly, handing back the list. “You gotta promise you’ll be careful, and act like we practiced, yeah?” Fell nodded again, acting exasperated, but Red knew he was just excited he was going to be allowed to go alone for the first time. His little brother had asked before, but Red was always too afraid to let him. He had a point; he had armor now, Red would know immediately if something went wrong.

But hey, it never hurt to be safe, right?

As Fell hugged him quickly and planted his usual kiss on the top of Red’s head, he was practically buzzing with happiness. Red caught a flash of star-shaped eyelights before he spun around and almost ran smack into the kitchen doorway. He chuckled as Fell turned back to him, giving him a thumbs-up before stepping around it carefully and making his way to the front door.  
As soon as he was out of sight, Red blipped to the side of the house, hidden from his brother’s view. He smiled at the sight of the happiness in every movement before Fell stopped mid-stride and seemed to physically change, making him smile curve down into a snarl and filling his eyelights with his magic, turning them red and narrowing them into slits. His walk turned predatory, and he summoned a sharp bone construct to hold like a club, which made Red suck in a sharp breath and have to close his eyes for a moment. They had been over this, yes it made him look scarier but if he didn’t know how to use it, he could hurt himself with it. But Red couldn’t very well expose himself now, then Fell would think he didn’t trust him and he would probably lock himself in his room with his puzzle books.

Red really hated it when his brother got sad, but damn it if he didn’t love him more than anything else in this kill or be killed world.

He stayed where he was, watching his brother as he prowled down the path, suppressing a shiver at the sure, predatory way he carried himself. They’d practiced so many times that it didn’t take much for Red to find his brother in every motion, but this other version of him still scared him somewhere in the back of his mind. 

Although, that might have something to do with the fact that Fell practiced when he couldn’t sleep and had thought it was a great idea to walk into Red’s room and proudly wake him up with a snarl on his face and a sharp bone in his hands. Red was perfectly aware of the fact that it was physically impossible for a skeleton to shit themselves but he could have sworn he had succeeded. 

He continued blipping along the path at intervals, being very careful to keep himself hidden from sight. Fell strode confidently to the store, letting his bone club dissipate before pushing the door open and walking inside, leaving Red to fidget outside. The only store in Snowdin was far too small for him to effectively hide in, but he stood directly in front of the window, stretching up on tiptoe to peer inside, tracking the movements of every monster he could see and ducking down whenever he caught sight of black and red armor.

“Ahem…”  
Red jumped, spinning around and looking up at the speaker. His face flushed as he realized what he had just been doing, then turned cold as he realized who he was looking at. “Heya, Grillbz. How’re things?”

Grillby stared down at him, seeming annoyed. “Things are the same as they’ve always been, Sans. What are you doing?”

Sans crinkled his brow, sidestepping away from the window. “Why the fuck do you care?”

Grillby raised his eyebrows and glanced into the store. “Is your retard brother in there?” Red narrowed his eyes, but before he could say anything, Grillby continued. “Why are you out without your leash? He decide he’s done with you and now you’re stalking him?”

Red glared at him. “Definitely,” he said, voice dripping with sarcasm. “How about you fuck off?”

Grillby snorted, then waved a hand at him dismissively. “I wouldn’t fuck you again if I was getting paid. Your fucktard of a brother is probably filthy.”

Red clenched and unclenched his fists for a moment, biting his tongue and weighing the pros and cons of fucking Grillby up right here in front of the store.  
The door rang, and Red glanced over, panicking when he recognized his brother and immediately taking a shortcut off to one side, where Fell couldn’t see him.   
Grillby looked confused for a moment, looking around for where Red had gone before noticing the taller skeleton, his arms filled with bags of groceries. He grinned widely, stepping directly into his path.   
Fell stopped short, and Red cursed under his breath. It was either step out now and have Fell find out he’d been following him, or hope for the best and let this play out.  
Or wait until Grillby inevitably tried to hurt his little brother and use the magic-infused armor as an excuse for his presence.

Red just about stepped out of hiding at that thought, but he was brought up short by his brother’s growling voice. “Fuck off!” He couldn’t help the pride that swelled in his soul at how steady he seemed to be.

Grillby didn’t even pause. “Hey, where’s your bitch?” Fell narrowed his eyes in what looked like anger, but Red knew it was confusion. Then his face cleared in understanding and he carefully turned and set the grocery bags aside, straightening them out before turning back to Grillby and resummoning the bone club. “What are you going to do, huh?” Grillby asked mockingly, spreading his arms wide in a clear invitation. “Poke me with your little--”

He was cut off by Fell swinging the bone at his face, connecting hard with the fire sprite’s cheek and sending him to the ground. “That,” he said carefully.

Red’s strangled sound of surprise and terror died in his throat as he saw Grillby start to lift himself onto his knees, then he surged forward as the bartender lept to his feet and gathered his magic in his palms, aiming the first at the arm holding the bone.   
Red swore to himself, not sure exactly what he was saying as he shortcutted directly to his brother’s side, coming barely too late to stop the hit from connecting. Fell cried out in pain, but Red forced himself to ignore it, instead stepping in front of his brother and letting his magic flare up, creating a pair of gaster blasters in the air above them. The air was filled with the sound of them charging up with magic, and he could see Grillby weighing his options before he let his magic splutter out. “Fucking fine then,” he heard him mutter as he stomped off, and he cursed under his breath again as he started to let his magic fade.  
He was interrupted by something tapping him on the shoulder, and he turned to see his brother’s panicked eyelights inches from his own. 

He stopped himself from jumping back in surprise, and Fell said lowly, “Bus. Want Bus.”

Red nodded. “We have to get home first, okay? You know the drill.”

“How did you know?”

Red was surprised to hear his brother talking so clearly when he was clearly terrified. “Know what, bro?”

Fell tilted his head to one side, considering carefully. “Save me?”

Red nodded slightly in understanding. “Remember, I have a sixth sense,” he said winking and tapping on Fell’s armor. His brother’s eyes widened in understanding, and Red grinned. He let his magic finish fading away, and then walked to where Fell had set down the groceries, glaring at a rabbit monster who had appeared in the doorway of the store. She just glared back for a moment before turning and walking back in, and he picked up the bags and made his way back to his brother, holding out his hand. Fell took it without hesitation, and Sans blipped them into the house.  
He set the bags down, then immediately turned to his brother, cursing under his breath some more as he saw the burn on his arm.  
Fell laughed suddenly, and Red looked up, startled. “What’s so funny, bro?”

The younger grinned, sitting on the floor so that Red could reach his injury. “Sans, you ding-ding again!” Then he started laughing, harder this time, and Red couldn’t help his smile. 

“Yeah, I know, buddy. I do that when I get scared, remember?”

“Or maaad, yes!” Fell giggled, and Red had a hard time getting him to hold still long enough to look at the burn.

He snorted, then in attempt to keep him still, said, “Hey, you said you wanted Bruiser, right?”

Fell immediately perked up. “Yes!” he said happily, looking up where he knew he would appear. Red summoned his blaster, and it immediately drifted down to hover near his brother, who reached out and pet along the top of it’s skull. Red knew this happiness wouldn’t last a whole lot longer; the adrenaline was probably still pumping through them both and Fell tended to get quieter after he crashed, so he got to work quickly, sending healing magic from his soul to the injury before patting Fell’s shoulder, letting him know it was okay to get up. Fell immediately reached out and wrapped his arms around Bruiser, carrying the weapon of destruction like it was a doll and leaving the room. 

Red snorted. He was too used to his brother’s abrupt exits to take any offense to them, and as he watched Fell across the room to the couch and pick up the puzzle book he was currently working through, he couldn’t help the smile that crossed his face.


	2. Cherry Pie, Cherry Pie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Undyne comes to visit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, Crush here, just wanted to put in a quick note that Fell is 22. Some of the things he says might sound like baby talk, but it's actually written with the intention that he speaks like a fully grown adult with a slur, he just uses very few words.

Red didn’t fully understand why, but some of Fell’s favorite days were when Captain Undyne came over to get Red’s full debriefing on current events in Snowdin. Undyne was one of the two people, other than himself, in the entire Underground that truly understood Fell. Undyne didn’t judge, if anything she embraced the fact that Fell wasn’t as vicious or bloodthirsty as most monsters she dealt with on a daily basis. She respected that Red was taking care of his little brother and stayed out of that aspect of his life, for the most part.

 

He still remembered the day his brother had come home with twigs and mud between his bones, claiming he had been on a small walk. Red knew Undyne had taken his brother out to teach him about fighting and, while he truly worried about his baby brother getting hurt, he trusted Undyne enough around him to allow it. Not that either of them knew he knew. 

 

He was currently sitting on the couch, watching TV, waiting for the Captain to arrive. She was coming for the same reason as always, under the guise of collecting his paperwork and a verbal summary of the past month. Red knew by this point, however, that she was coming for Fell. He’d spoken to some of the leaders of the other divisions, and they mailed in their reports every month and barely heard a “thank you” in response. 

 

He was startled out of his reverie by something shaking his shoulder, and he turned to look behind him. Fell was standing behind him, holding out a stack of paper that Red immediately recognized as being this month’s paperwork. “Oh, wow, look at that,” he drawled in a tone that displayed exactly how much he cared. 

 

Fell glared down at him, then dropped the whole stack heavily in his lap, making it smack into his pelvis with a little more force than Red thought was strictly necessary or even possible, considering the fact that he hadn’t used magic to throw it at him. “Hey! I did the one on top, it’s not like she’ll even notice!” he wheezed, rubbing at his sore bone and pushing the papers off to one side. 

 

“Now, Sans!” Fell said, arms crossed, and Red cocked an eyebrow at him before picking up a pen and, without even looking, signed his name on the second paper before replacing the top one and leaning back on the couch with a long, satisfied sigh. Fell immediately grinned, reaching over him and grabbing the sheet Sans had just signed, holding it up for him to read. In Fell’s messy-ass handwriting, Red could just barely make out the words,  _ I, Comic Sans Serif, do solemnly swear to finish all of my paperwork before Captain Undyne gets here. _

 

Red snorted, then sat up and said, “Well, fuck, I guess I’m contractually obligated then, aren’t I? I’d better get to it.”

 

Fell nodded decisively and went to hang up the contract on the fridge, right next to last month’s. Red waited until he had disappeared, then did the papers on the top part of the stack, all ones that only required his signature, and the only paperwork he had not yet actually completed. 

 

When Fell returned and Red was laying on the couch again, he huffed impatiently, and Red grinned up  at him. “All finished!” he said brightly, to which Fell looked at him disbelievingly. Red gestured at the pile, and Fell picked it up and began leafing through it, only to jump, startled, as the doorbell rang. “I got it,” Red said, starting to stand, but Fell practically ran to the door, clutching the papers to his chest and putting his eye to the peephole. 

 

“UNDYNE IS HERE!” he announced loudly, and Red grimaced. 

 

“You don’t say?” he muttered, then, loud enough for the other to hear him, “Be a good host, boss-man, let her in.”

 

Fell opened the door carefully, immediately shoving the papers into Undyne’s face, appearing to be trying to curb his excitement in order to look professional. “From Sans,” he said, and Undyne pulled the papers away from him, setting them aside before holding her hands out towards him, one eyebrow raised questioningly. 

 

He nodded excitedly, and she seized him, giving him a solid noogie before letting him go. “How are you today, nerd?” she asked, and Fell gave her a thumbs up in response. Red could tell he was getting over excited, so he stood up and crossed the room, holding out a hand to his superior. 

 

She snorted. “As if I’m about to shake your hand, I’m not about to get zapped again,” she said, but she was still smiling from talking to Fell. Red re-pocketed the joy buzzer, grinning at her and completely ignoring the disapproving look he was getting from Fell. 

 

“Aw, come on, ‘Dyne--”

 

“Excuse me?”

 

“Captain ‘Dyne--”

 

“No…”

 

There was a long pause. “Capitanne Fishbitch?”

 

“I’m going to fucking fire you, Sans.”

 

Red grinned, then turned to his brother. “What do you think, bro? Should she fire me?” Fell shook his head. “Go show her why not.”

 

Fell smiled hugely, then grabbed her hand and tugged her into the kitchen, leading her to the still-steaming cherry pie that was sitting on the counter. “You!” he said happily.

 

Undyne looked doubtfully at the latticework, then back up at Fell. “I don’t think that’s supposed to be me, Paps. At least, not until I’ve been in a couple of fights, right! HA!” she said, clapping him on the back. He looked confused for a few moments, then worried as her meaning clicked. Completely oblivious as always, she leaned forward, looking at it more closely. 

 

Red spoke up then, not wanting his brother to go too far down that track of thought. “She’s kidding, bro. It’s okay, just explain yourself, or tell me if you’d like me to.”

 

Undyne looked up, one finger just shy of sticking into the filling for a taste, as Fell got ahold of himself and thought about his options. “ _ For _ you, ‘Dyne. Not of,” he said carefully, his “for” slurring a little, but still clear enough for her to understand. 

 

“Oh!” she exclaimed, quickly withdrawing her hand and using it to pat Fell’s arm. He still looked a little upset, but she knew by now to just let him work through it instead of hovering over him like  _ some people _ . “Well, thanks, dorks! I appreciate it!”

 

“I guess you could say…” came a voice from the doorway, causing Fell and Undyne to share a look of exasperation. “It was  _ cherry _ nice of us to make it, right?”

 

“Fuck off, Sans,” they said at the same time, causing Fell to clap his hands over his mouth to smother his laugh in case he encouraged his brother accidentally. 

Undyne quickly turned and stuck her entire finger into the filling before bringing it to her mouth, ignoring both the looks she was getting from the skeleton brothers and the pain she was now in from being a fucking idiot and sticking her finger in a steaming pie. “So, Paps,” she began, casually walking over to the sink and turning on the cold water. “How do you feel about coming with me to file this paperwork?”

 

Red rolled his eyes, choosing to ignore the less-than-subtle double meaning behind her offer. Sometimes he wondered if she actually did know that he knew about their “training sessions” and was just fucking with him to see how far she could take it. 

 

Fell’s eyes lit up, and he turned to Red hopefully. Red grinned at his excitement, then turned to Undyne and said, “Fine with me, just make sure he doesn't--” 

 

He was cut off when he saw Fell’s hands moving rapidly as he signed something out. Red watched carefully, picking up when he started over and doing his best to piece it together. Undyne watched, looking confused, as Fell forced himself to slow down, exaggerating his motions so that Red could more easily understand him. 

 

“Yes, I know you're not a babybones, and I wouldn't be bringing up the Grillby thing if I were you because we still haven't talked about that, and you're in some pretty big trouble there,” Red said, slightly exasperated. 

 

Undyne cocked an eyebrow. “Grillby thing?” she asked curiously. 

 

“He went shopping by himself yesterday and got attacked by Grillby. I managed to get there in time but he was holding his own.”

 

Undyne choked, then held up a hand to Fell for a high five, which he didn't immediately return, looking at Sans curiously. “In trouble?” he asked, looking confused. 

 

“Yeah, bro. What we're doing carryin’ around a bone club?”

 

Fell didn't deign to respond, choosing instead to turn to Undyne and exclaim, “I hit him!”

 

She looked shocked, looking between Red and Fell. “You what?”

 

“I hit Grillby!”

 

She held up both hands this time, and Fell smacked them eagerly, then she grabbed him and gave him another noogie, much to his apparent delight. As soon as she let go of him, he straightened up, fixing his sweater carefully and lifting his shoulders in an attempt to look dignified. “Dust the fuckface,” he said determinedly, and Red raised one brow, exchanging a look with Undyne.

 

“I'm sure you will, bro. That kind of determination just can't go unfulfilled,” he said, and Fell snorted. 

 

Undyne stared at Fell for a moment before chuckling quietly, shaking her head. “Well, I actually can’t stay as long today nerds. Alphys needs me to come oversee a transport of materials, so I’ll have to take this and run.” She picked up the pie with one hand and wrapped Fell in a one-armed hug, stopping in the kitchen doorway long enough to pop Red in the back of the head before running to the front door. “See ya Paps!” Fell waved before hurrying after her to shut the door behind her. Red walked into the living room and plopped on the couch, still rubbing his skull and grimacing.

 

“What you get, Sans!” Fell said decidedly, nodding to himself as he sat on the other side of the couch, TV remote in hand. Red rolled his eyes, but smiled as Fell switched on the television and switched channels for a bit, trying to find something he hadn’t already watched five times over.

 

Finally settling on Cooking with a Killer Robot, Fell settled himself into the sofa and grinned at Red. A few motions of the hands later and Red was grinning as well.

“I think you’re right, she probably just wanted to go kiss Alphys and stuff.” Fell giggled to himself before turning back to the TV. Red watched his brother for a moment, then scooted over and curled up beside him, dragging the afghan off the back of the couch and using his magic to help wrap it around the both of them, Fell giggling again as he cuddled as close as he could. The two of them then watched Mettaton stumble his way across the stage, making jokes and comments every so often, until they finally fell asleep, smiles still on their faces.


	3. Bone Maze Days

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Color me happy about this chapter (ayyyyyy) 
> 
> You guys will understand that pun once you've read the chapter lol
> 
> Warning for Grillby being a dick again

When Fell was a kid, he adored the puzzle books, as dirty and torn as they were, that Red would bring home from his trips to the Dump. He would pore over them, completing each one with the use of his colorful felt-tipped markers, then he would line it up on the large shelf in his room, right next to the last one and the one before that and so on and so forth. Now, of course, he was almost 23 years old, and that poor bookshelf was absolutely  _ stuffed _ with the finished books. Red had suggested once that they take some off to make room for the new ones, but the look of abject horror on his brother’s face answered that easily enough. Instead, Red had broken out his practically nonexistent carpenter skills and added a few shelves. Fell had much preferred this, and he seemed to be taking joy in filling them right back up again. 

 

Red was standing on the landing, looking down at the couch and watching as Fell colored on the book he was currently had. It was a brightly colored children’s puzzle book, honestly looking somewhat out of place in their black and red-themed home. Fell tended to blow through these easier puzzles, but he took extra care in completely filling in each line in the path, seeming to like the larger spaces between the lines that allowed for more color on the page. Red was pretty sure that the marker he was using now was one that Alphys had made for him. When Undyne told the small scientist about Fell’s love of bright colors, she had almost immediately found a way to make a way for him to color with them. When she had given them to him, the look of pure joy on his face had inspired her to teach him how to make them himself.  He was very careful to only use exactly how much ink he needed to, however, because most of Fell’s favorite colors were very hard to find in the underground. He treasured the one soft pink sweater Red had managed to find, saving it for special occasions and harder days, and wearing his gray, black, and yellow clothes most other days. 

 

Fell made a quiet noise of frustration, and Red leaned further over the banister, the parenting instinct he had picked up over the years pushing him to see what was wrong and make it better. But his brother just switched markers and started on the next curve, leaning in closer to the paper. Red sighed slightly and allowed himself to relax, rubbing at his eye sockets. 

 

He started quietly down the stairs, making his way into the kitchen. Fell didn’t even look up, as immersed in his coloring as he was.  Red crossed  to the fridge, carefully moving aside one of the many contracts to look at the calendar that hung on the door. April 16th. Okay. He still had...he did some quick math in his head. 152 days. They still had 152 days. 

 

He leaned forward, resting his forehead against the cool metal of the fridge for a moment, breathing deeply. When he was calm, he walked out into the living room and just watched Fell for a moment. He finished the maze he was on and seemed to be considering the next one before he closed the book and looked up, smiling at Red. He held out his left hand in front of his body and tapped his wrist twice. Red leaned back to look at the stove clock, then leaned back and said, “It’s coming up on 5:00. Are you gonna start dinner?”

 

Fell nodded and stood up, seeming to deliberate for a moment. “I can take it upstairs,” Red said, holding out his hands for the book and markers. Fell smiled and handed them over before walking happily into the kitchen. 

 

Red watched him go fondly, then turned and jogged up the stairs, careful not to shake up the homemade markers too much. He went into his brother’s room, carefully placing the items on his nightstand, making sure that the corners were lined up and everything was straight. 

 

He glanced up and found himself smiling. The walls of the room were lined with page after page of hand-drawn mazes, something he only ever did when he came to work with Red and was left with nothing to do while he patrolled. Red reached up and thumbed at a creation he recognized from a few days prior. Fell had worked on it the entire day, not letting Red see it until it was completely finished. It was a somewhat impressive rendition of his own face, scar and all, and he had held it out with one of his markers until Red sat down and colored in the path while he watched excitedly. Red smiled at the memory, fingers tracing the shape of his name, outlined in red and blue and green. 

 

Finally, he drew back and walked out of the room, taking one last look back before flicking off the light and closing the door. He walked down the steps, smile still tugging at the corners of his mouth.

 

He was greeted by the sight of Fell sitting criss-cross on the floor in the living room, carefully stacking summoned bones on top of one another, beginning to build up a tower on one end of the maze he had outlined on the floor. 

 

Guilt washed through Red, but he pushed it down and crouched next to his brother. “Hey bro, what’s wrong?”

 

Fell didn’t answer, but he looked up at the kitchen doorway for a split second, causing Red to follow his gaze. He frowned and stood up, crossing the room to see what his brother was looking at. 

 

Glass littered the floor, and the window now sported a huge hole. In the middle of it all, there was a large rock, obviously the culprit of this mess. Red frowned and looked out the window, but whoever had thrown it was long gone. He walked over to the rock and picked it up, turning it over to reveal a piece of white paper that had been taped to its surface.

 

“Watch your back, you retarded dumbass, have fun fucking your mutt.”

 

Red growled, then he whipped around and chucked the rock back through the window. “Mother _ fucker _ !” he yelled after it, hoping Grillby was near enough to hear how fucked he was about to be. He turned and stomped out into the living room with the intent to go after the asshole, but was brought up short by the sight of his brother’s shaking phalanges as he placed another bone. 

 

His rage dissipated into worry, and he went over to him, sitting beside him and starting to help. They worked in silence for a few moments until the shaking settled, then Red held out his hand in a clear invitation. Fell stopped and stared at it, then reached out and grabbed hold, letting the bones disappear. He looked up as Red asked, “Did it hit you?” There was a moment of thought before Fell shook his head, and Red sighed in relief. “Did you read it?” There was a longer moment of silence, and Fell shook his head again, but Red knew it was a lie. He let it go with a sigh, standing slowly and encouraging Fell to rise to his feet. 

 

Red reached out with his magic and picked up the glass, tossing it all out the window to worry about later as he said, “Do you want me to go get one of your puzzle books while you heat up some frozen dinners?” 

 

Fell’s face lit up a little, and he signed something almost too rapidly for Red to understand. “Yeah, of course I picked up some with the brownies, I even got the kind with the rainbow sprinkles on top,” he said, smiling up at his brother. Fell’s eyelights immediately morphed into hearts, the pupils going star-shaped, then he held out his hand, folding down the middle two fingers and stretching the others out, then touching his thumb to his forehead, extending his pointer finger and bringing his hand down to meet his other fist. Red grinned. “I love you too, bro.”

 

A few minutes later, Red blipped back down the stairs with the book of mazes and Fell’s markers. Fell was sitting on the floor in front of the coffee table, wrapped in the couch afghan, with two steaming plastic trays in front of him. When he heard Red behind him, he started guiltily and tried to hide the fact that he had just stuffed Red’s brownie in his mouth. Red snorted and joined him, snuggling into the afghan and handing Fell the markers and book. 

 

Fell immediately flipped it open, cracking open his brightest yellow marker and setting to work. Red watched him fondly, sticking a chicken nugget into his mouth absentmindedly. Every so often Fell would pause just long enough to nibble on his own chicken strips, dunking them in the hot sauce Red would occasionally get him. Buffalo sauce was strong enough for Fell to find it spicy, but not enough that Red had to worry about him getting drunk off of it. Then he would continue the process, every once in awhile shooting Red a glare for making noises as he ate.

 

Soon their food was gone, the maze completely filled, and as Red cleaned everything up Fell took his puzzle book back upstairs, changing into his night clothes and snuggling under his covers to wait for Red to come up and read him his bedtime story.

  
Red made his way upstairs and pulled the usual story from its shelf, settling in the chair his little brother kept in front of his desk. He leafed to the right page, cleared his throat, and began to read. Within a few pages he heard a soft snoring, Fell curled on his side, nearly covered from head to toe under his blankets. Red smiled softly as he closed the book and set it back on the shelf, leaving a good night kiss on the top of his baby brother’s skull before walking out, shutting the door gently behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Crush drew a [thing](http://crushingonsans.tumblr.com/post/156339309954/perceptions-fell) for this


	4. Stretch is a Douche and He Should Feel Bad

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So uh... I really fucking hate this Stretch. ~SansyFresh

Red watched as his brother marched about his sentry station, looking at different things that caught his attention. He smiled; it wasn’t a rare occurrence for Fell to get distracted by different things, such as a snow poff or a strange looking tree trunk. Once or twice Fell had even dug little trinkets out of the snow, dropped at one time or another by another guard on patrol. He would always show Red, a proud look on his face as he asked him about whatever the item was. 

Red jumped a little as his phone vibrated in his pocket, signalling the end of his shift. He stood and stretched his spine for a moment, smiling up at Fell who had strode over as soon as he caught his movement. “Hey bro, time ta head home for the day. Did you find anything new?” Fell frowned slightly, shaking his head, before kicking at a large snow poff beside the wooden station. Red chuckled, then held out his hand, Fell taking it once he noticed it was there. In a flash of red magic they were in the living room of their home, Fell only staying in place for a moment to clear his head from the rapid transport before running off.

He shook his head in mild amusement, plopping on the couch to wait for his little brother to realize he needed to take his armor off. Soon enough Fell walked back into the room, raising his arms to show Red what he wanted him to do, a questioning smile on his face. Red smiled and stood to his feet. “Yeah, let me get you out of that real quick.” His hands went to undo the tops clasps when from below their house, deep in the basement, came a loud roar, almost like a mild explosion. Fell immediately backed away, his eyelights flaring red as he looked around, afraid they were in danger. 

Red growled in the general direction of the floor, suspicious it was Grillby trying to start shit again, but he wouldn’t know until he checked it out. He looked up at his brother for a moment, torn in what he should do. Fell was looking around nervously, staring at the floor before checking the windows and doors. His baby brother shouldn’t have to be afraid in their damn home.

“I’m going to go take care of it bro, can you hold down the fort up here?” Red watched as his brother battled between fear and wanting to try and be brave for him, prompting a smile on his face once more. Finally Fell nodded, crossing his arms and putting on his scariest snarl. Red shivered lightly, giving him a thumbs up before walking out the front door and locking it behind him. He made his way around to the back of the house, digging the basement key out of his pocket. He hadn’t had any desire to return to working on the machine after their father had died, but out of respect for the old man he had moved the machine down to the basement when he and Fell had moved to Snowdin.

The door opened with a simple twist and push, the hinges creaking noisily. Red flinched; whoever was down there would know he was coming. Putting his magic on display and showing his fangs, he stomped down the steps, eyelights shining out through the light haze of smoke that had filled the space. From what he could tell the machine itself was the source of the smoke, and just for a second he felt a spark of hope in his chest that Gaster had finally found a way to come back. He crushed it as he continued forward, using his magic to turn the lights on and taking a defensive stance as he saw a form shifting on the floor.

The form sat up slowly as he watched, waving its arm around to clear the smoke in the air. Red could hear him mumbling under his breath, but he couldn’t make out the words. The voice sounded almost familiar, but he couldn’t place it, instead squinting as the clearing of air made them easier to see. 

It was a skeleton, that much was apparent. He was tall, taller even than fell, and he was wearing a bright orange hoodie with green cargo shorts. His mumbling got louder before he suddenly shot to his feet, inspecting the smoking contraption in front of them. He hadn’t seen Red yet, apparently, and the volume of his swearing grew louder as he took in the wreckage. 

“For fuck’s sake, this is what happens when I put effort into anything!” The stranger threw his hands up in the air and spun around, evidently ready to stomp up the stairs. He was brought up short by the form of Red, magic still apparent and his intent clearly written across his face. Red’s expression flickered for a split second as he took in the stranger. They looked like Fell, if his baby brother didn’t have a scar and flat teeth. “...Sans? Bro, what are you--”

Red growled, and the other’s expression seemed to clear slightly. “How the fuck do you know my name?”

The other held up his hands, holding a defensive stance. “Hang on, I think I might have an explanation.” Red’s magic flared more, making it very clear that he should hurry up or get dusted. “Have you heard of multiverse theory?”

Red raised a brow, snorting derisively. “What the fuck are you talking about?” He put the pieces together, then relaxed slightly for a moment. “You expect me to believe you’re an alternate version of my brother?”

“Well...yeah. My name is Papyrus. If that’s your brother’s name, then I would say that’s pretty likely. You’re definitely not my Sans, but you look just like him.”

Red narrowed his eyes in disbelief. “You are not my brother. There is no fucking way.”

Not-Papyrus sighed and stuck his hands in the pocket of his hoodie, seeming far more relaxed than he really should be, seeing as he was currently being threatened. “You can call me Stretch if it makes this easier. ‘S what Slim calls me.”

“Great to meet you. Now get the fuck out of my house.”

Stretch rolled his eyes, and gestured back to the machine, which let out a convenient hiss. “I’m a bit stuck. I can fix it, but it’s gonna take a while.”

Red growled, but finally relented. “Fine. How long is a while?”

Stretch grinned and shrugged, pulling a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and lighting up before Red could say anything. “A few days? Weeks? I’m not really sure. It’s never been quite this broken before.”

Red huffed. “And I suppose you’ll be needing a place to sleep?”

“I could always stay at the inn, if your world has one. I don’t want to intrude on your home, especially since you don’t seem particularly excited to have me here.”

The Snowdin Inn was a place you went if you were either well-known and powerful or you just wanted to get stabbed in your sleep. Red could see the other’s stats, and the way he dressed and carried himself, and he doubted this guy could even survive on Fell’s reputation. He sighed. “We have a couch you’re welcome to stay on. It’s not great, but at least you won’t get dusted.” He paused for a moment, glaring up at him. “Unless, of course, you touch my brother.”

Stretch winked gaily, taking a drag of his cigarette before saying, “Wouldn’t dream of it. I’m taken.”

“That’s not what I was fucking--”

“Anyway,” Stretch continued, “What can I call you? When I think ‘Sans’, I picture a blue bandana and stars in his eyes, and it’s just not really fitting with you.”

Red made a face. “I don’t give a shit. Call me whatever you want, just do your best to leave as soon as you can.”

Stretch grinned. “Sure thing, Red. Thing is, I can’t really do a whole lot right now, because my magic levels are basically gone. It’s a 1HP thing, I’m sure you get it a lot with your brother.”

Red didn’t say anything in response to that, instead turning and stomping up the steps in a wordless invitation for the other to follow. Stretch did so, trudging up the steps behind him. They emerged, one after the other, at the back of the house, and Red tugged the other out of the way to lock up the door before leading him quickly to the front of the house. Surprisingly enough, he did this without a word, which Red was pretty sure was unusual for him. 

Red let himself into the house, immediately spotting Fell still standing in the same place, and as Stretch came into the house behind him, the confused look on his face turned back into a snarl, just as Red had taught him. Red gave him a slight nod, letting the other enter their house. Fell relaxed slightly, leaving the red magic to his eyelights, still keeping his abrasive personality up. Stretch looked at him for a moment, anger visible in his features as he took a step in between Fell and Red.

“Sans, who is this?” Fell asked, his words clear as he carefully spoke them. Red gave Stretch a slight look, but answered as best at he could.

“This is another Papyrus, bro. He’s from another Underground.” Red could see the confusion swirling through his brother’s eyelights, though his expression didn’t change. He crossed his arms, still frowning deeply at his double. Stretch was frowning as well, almost looking angry. 

“Red, can you be honest with me for a sec?” Stretch asked, his magic flaring slightly. Red narrowed his eyes, stepping between the newcomer and his double, not about to take the chance he might try something.

“Yeah?”

“Does your brother make you wear that collar?” Stretch asked with a venom in his voice, his glare locked on Fell who, though he kept up the facade of distrust, was very confused. Red blinked, then felt around his neck, finding his red leather collar wrapped firmly around his throat. He looked back up and scoffed, immediately taking it off and shortcutting it to his room.

“That’s none of your business, now is it?” Red held the glare Stretch sent to him, before growling as it changed to a look of pity. Stretch then directed his anger back at Fell, who still didn’t quite understand what exactly the other was talking about. Fell flinched as Stretch was suddenly in his space, golden magic swirling in his eyelights.

“I don’t know how you can live with yourself, treating your brother like that.” Stretch spat, completely ignoring Red’s presence in the room. 

Red was at a loss for words, unsure what had brought this on or what was even happening. Fell stared at Stretch for a moment, keeping his face impassive as best he could before letting his eyes flick to Red, looking for answers or an explanation. “I don’t know--”

“Shut up, asshole. You’re not the first one of your kind I’ve met, and I’ve seen what people like you do to the people who love them!” Stretch’s magic was flaring, and Fell seemed to be repressing the urge to flinch away, eyes flicking between the very apparent threat and his brother.

“I-I-I-I d…” Fell looked frustrated with himself, and Red stepped forward slightly, hating to see his brother upset. It’d been a long time since he’d gotten bad enough that he was having trouble talking.

Stretch scoffed. “What, can’t even find the words to defend yourself? I knew you were an ass but I didn’t know you were were fucking retarded on top of that!”

Red froze completely, beyond shocked at the words that had just come out of the other’s mouth. 

Fell’s mouth was moving, but he didn’t seem to be capable of getting anything to come out. He struggled for a few seconds, then his eyes filled with frustrated tears and he flipped Stretch off before stomping to the door, pushing past Red and pulling it open, stepping out into the cold of Snowdin. His back straightened, and he summoned a bone club just as he slammed the door behind him, causing Red to flinch slightly. He was broken out of his shock, and he spun to face Stretch, his anger apparent.

“Who the fuck do you think you are?!”


End file.
